The 3 differences between neuropsychology and psychobiology

A summary of these two scientific disciplines linked to psychology and biology.

Psychology is a profession, an academic discipline and a science that deals with the analysis and study of mental processes in human beings. When thinking about this branch of knowledge and clinical diagnosis, most people tend to think of psychologists and psychiatrists, two well-established professions in the global mental health landscape.

Even so, with the advancement of science, distinctions between different branches are becoming increasingly necessary. For example, did you know that terms such as neuropsychology, psychobiology, neurobiology or behavioral neurology are widely related to the world of human behavior?

That's right, knowledge has no borders, and therefore, it is increasingly necessary to specialize more and more in order to understand each process and engine that drives human behavior. Here we will see what are the differences between neuropsychology and psychobiology, relatively recent terms in the world of mental health.The terms neuropsychology and psychobiology, relatively recent terms in the world of mental health.

Differences between neuropsychology and psychobiology: from behavior to neurons.

In order to understand the differences between both terms, it is necessary to go to the etymological roots of both words. As we can see, both contain the prefix element "psycho", from the Greek, which means "soul" or "mental activity".

So much for the linguistic similarities, giving us a clue that both branches have some kind of relationship with the study of the human mind. In one of the terms we note the prefixal element "neuro", which again, in Greek, refers to the nerve or nervous system. The rest of the word of the second term, "psychobiology", is quite self-explanatory, since it refers to biology, the science that studies living beings and their vital processes.

So, from the words alone, we can already intuit that one of the disciplines will focus on one of the disciplines will focus on the nervous system, and the other on explaining behaviors from a Biological point of view, right?right? Now, let's start with the differences between neuropsychology and psychobiology.

1. A question of approach

Neuropsychology is defined as a discipline and clinical specialty that converges between neurology (medical specialty of nervous system disorders) and psychology. In simpler words, it could be said that this branch studies the effects of an injury, accident or abnormality of the central nervous system on the different cognitive processes of the human being.. It is not all about diseases, as it also seeks knowledge of the neural bases of complex mental processes in healthy individuals.

These "complex mental processes" respond to mechanisms that we humans put into practice continuously, even unconsciously. Some of them are attention, memory, language, perception, praxias (acquired motor skills), executive functions and emotions. All these components, as a whole, define us both as a species and as individuals, and condition our daily life and the way we relate to our environment.

On the other hand, psychobiology takes a much more primal and evolutionary approach.The basis of this approach is based on the understanding of animal behavior through biological processes.

From a purely psychobiological point of view, behavior is nothing more than the response of a living being to an environmental stimulus that affects it. Like all other activities carried out by animals, behavior would respond to an adaptive function, a mere reflection of the adaptation of the species to the environment in which it finds itself, with the purpose of maximize its chances of survival and leave its genetic imprint on future generations. Let's go deeper into this concept.

2. What is behavior and how is it modulated?

Neuropsychology seeks, like any discipline related to psychology, to understand human behavior, but especially its relationship with the functioning of the brain.

If we take into account that the brain is a highly plastic organ, we can postulate that it will undergo changes in its activity and structure throughout the individual's life (especially in the early years of development), resulting in behavioral variations. in its activity and structure throughout the individual's life (especially in the first years of development), which will give rise to behavioral variations.

These assertions are not merely speculative, since several studies have shown that, for example, experience modifies the human brain continuously, strengthening or strengthening it. the human brain continuously, strengthening or weakening the synapses that connect neurons.. The brain, as we can see, is the central point and axis of this discipline. Some of the dogmas of neuropsychology are the following:

• Psychological and behavioral aspects depend on the brain structure.
• Each psychological faculty depends on the brain region that controls it.
• The quality and efficacy of each faculty depends on the development of the encephalic mass associated with it.
• These faculties are innate and inheritable.

As we can see, behavior, according to neuropsychology, cannot be understood without the brain and its possible modifications, both by alterations and pathologies and by natural processes, such as learning. and its possible modifications, both by alterations and pathologies and by natural processes, such as learning.

Psychobiology, on the other hand, does not seem to have a specific interest in the human brain. For example, the evolutionary branch of psychobiology tries to understand behavior as a product of natural selection. Natural selection, postulated by Darwin, tells us that individuals with characteristics that promote their survival are positively selected, since they are the ones that will reproduce and give rise to offspring. Over time, populations will inherit these successful characteristics, as the less viable ones will be left behind.The less viable ones will fall by the wayside and will have no genetic representation in future generations of the species.

Therefore, behavior itself can be understood as a product of a phylogenetic history within the human species. That is, as the set of responses that, in ancient times, promoted the survival and reproductive success of our ancestors, the "evolutionary achievements".

Thus, human behavior, according to psychobiology, is not so much dependent on the cerebral cortex and its components, as it is on the history and its components, but rather on the phylogenetic history of our species, the genetic endowment of each individual and how it modulates its responses, and the environmental factors that modulate the responses contained in the genes. Complex, isn't it?

3. The response to aggression: a case study

The differences between neuropsychology and psychobiology can be understood when we look at studies from both branches. For example, how will each of them approach the study of aggression in humans?

For example, neuropsychology will look first at structural differences in the anterior regions of the cortex that modulate violent responses. that modulate violent responses. Questions such as: are cortical imbalances related to aggressive responses? how does neuroanatomy relate to antisocial and violent behavior? which regions of the prefrontal cortex are related to aggressive behavior and what happens if they are modified?

In contrast, psychobiology will take a completely different approach. Faced with the violent behavior of certain humans, will look first at the relationships of the hormones that cause these behaviors and what evolutionary significance they have evolutionary significance of these hormones for humans and other vertebrates.

In these cases, questions such as: what social agents cause changes in serotonin levels in the body of the aggressive person? What is the function of the components that propitiate violence and how are they expressed in animals? What is the ethological significance of this behavior? Did it maximize in its time the survival of the beings that showed it?

Conclusions

As we have seen, neuropsychology and psychobiology are different, but not mutually are different terms, but not mutually exclusive.. The former is in charge of explaining behavioral variations in human beings using the brain as a central axis, especially in its morphological modifications. Psychobiology, on the other hand, is based on studying the phylogenetic inheritance of these behaviors, their hormonal mechanisms, and how these types of responses are translated in the animal world.

As complex as both branches may seem, one thing is clear: knowledge of human behaviors, both from a physiological and evolutionary point of view, is essential. The more we know about ourselves, the faster we will improve both as individuals and as a society as a whole.

Bibliographical references:

• Alcázar-Córcoles, M. Á., Verdejo-García, A., Bouso-Saiz, J. C., & Bezos-Saldaña, L. (2010). Neuropsychology of impulsive aggression. Journal of neurology, 50(5), 291-299.
• Moreno, L. M. G. (2002). Psychobiology and education. Revista complutense de educación, 13(1), 211-227.
• Pinel, J., & Barnes, S. J. (2018, April). Psychobiology. Edra.
• Vázquez, S. S., & Fernández, A. G. (1991). A conceptual approach to Psychobiology. Revista de psicología general y aplicada: Revista de la Federación Española de Asociaciones de Psicología, 44(4), 389-394.